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Topic Review (Newest First)

01-25-2010 04:15 PM

soulofmine

Quote:

Originally Posted by chall03

What alot of people try and do Travis, is work for a period of time to save money, then stop working and go sailing for as long as they are able!

Hi all,
Though I am twice Travis' age, my growing interest in sailing abroad is young and eager. I know little when it comes to cost of operating a sailboat, as currently I only have the luxury of "friends with boats" and not one of my own (working on that part). If you don't mind me asking, how much "saving" are we talking here?

((Huge assumption))
I assume that aside from regulatory and marina fees, fuel, and food there isn't much more than the cost of maintaining the boat and gear to worry about. Please fill in the blanks of what I'm missing here.

Does anyone have a vague "For instance" they could share? Say for a month of cruising the Atlantic or Gulf Coast, or a longer trip to the Caribbean, would be what....4..5..6 figures for a month or two? I am recent college grad, but currently sitting on very low entry level wages.

I know this is vague, but honestly, I just don't know what to expect, and it would be nice to shoot for a realistic number when it comes to saving. I'm a long way off from my goal, and I'm sure I will figure it all out in the process of getting there, but any advice would be great.

Thanks so much for your help.

***Going to answer my own thread here with an edit. If you want to reply that's fine, but I have done a lot more searching on this site, and found a lot more info that makes these questions unnecessary, and downright unanswerable. The Salt's Corner Table is good place to start if you are as green as I am ***

01-02-2010 09:59 PM

twinsdad

Travis,

As you are probably figuring out by now, there are many different types of opportunities open to you. You don't need to work at a marina to live near one. There are lots of towns and cities which offer many different types of job opportunities. I live in CT, not too far from NYC. Even if one doesn't like cities, there are so many suburbs that have all types of jobs. I have to believe the same is true all along the coasts of the US.

You have lots of time to make those decisions. In the meantime, keep doing well at school, as it will provide you with more opportunities and choices down the road. Best of luck to you.

12-30-2009 01:41 PM

eherlihy

Sign up & take a look at ActiveCaptain (www.activecaptain.com). It will show you an interactive map with ALL the known marinas, and boating related businesses nearby (if you know of one that is not there, you can add it, and help grow the site).

Looking in College Station Texas I found the TAMU Sailing Club
PO Box 5813
College Station, TX 77844-5813
United States (US)

Give them a call, and ask if they have any opportunities for someone like yourself.

There are a bunch of marine related businesses on Lake Conroe.

- Ed

12-30-2009 12:56 PM

NICHOLSON58

All good advice. You could also consider a plan where you sail - race with a crew and get lots of experience. You will learn a lot about different boats, people and conditions. (Note; on the people thing, don't waste time on a boat with screamers, shouters or captain Bligh). With increased experience, you could learn to care for and deliver or skipper boats for others. Costs are low, exposure and fun is high, total commitment is low. With enough on-water time, you can also get your USCG captain's license. Good hunting. Here is how we did it.

I sailed small boats from the time I was ten. (505; 470; Prindle Cat; Bucineer; Super Porpoise; Sun fish; Hobie; Laser; MC Scow; Cape Dory 10) Later, after college and just married, I joined a race crew and raced my buns off on big boats all around the Great Lakes until my job took us away after about 25 years. I kept the Dory and Sunfish as my knock-about boats and then added a 20 ft Tornado Cat. At this point, I feel like I could walk onto just about any boat. We are now close to retirement. We rented in the Abacos a few times and love the tropics & Caribbean. We searched for Florida (Naples or so) for a retirement venue but found real estate, taxes, insurance totally impossible. On a whim, I suggested we follow my cousin's lead and live aboard & circumnavigate. She said "find a boat". Six months later we were having a hurricane damaged 58 ft Camper & Nicholson ketch delivered to Grand Rapids, Michigan. The restoration is well under way & after three years, we plan to launch this spring. We will exit the Great Lakes by the St Lawrence. (photos in my gallery http://www.sailnet.com/photogallery/.../ppuser/159746 )

12-17-2009 10:31 PM

chall03

What alot of people try and do Travis, is work for a period of time to save money, then stop working and go sailing for as long as they are able!
If you want to travel far and wide then the problem is that it is obviously quite hard to maintain a job while doing it...

There is no one right answer, we all basically do what works for us depending on our dreams and circumstances...

Personally I am working hard and saving money so that I can then basically stop working for hopefully a couple of years and live and sail on a boat without having to worry about work at all

12-13-2009 04:50 PM

traviswantsaboat

i live in college station texas. home of the fightin texas a&m aggies. about an hour and a half to houston.

12-11-2009 03:19 PM

tager

I live on a sailboat, and I am an undergrad, so it is possible to go to college instead of getting a workaday job. There are bound to be jobs near most marinas. Even if you are just washing windows, you can make a living. The cost of living on a sailboat can be a lot lower than renting an apartment, if you work wisely with your money.

12-11-2009 03:09 PM

ottos

Travis - tell us where you live. People on this board come from all over the world. They can generally point you in the right direction.

Depending what you want to do for a living, there's plenty of work in places where you can sail.

12-11-2009 02:02 PM

traviswantsaboat

thanks yall. i have an aunt and an uncle that took off work for a couple years and took my 3 year old cousin down to the carribean. they said it was the happiest time of their lives. the only reason id be at the dock is during the week because id kinda have to have a job.

12-10-2009 10:48 PM

leland515

Quote:

Originally Posted by traviswantsaboat

I am 14 years old and i work really hard in school. the only problem was that i didnt know what i was working for. then i found BOATS. what i want to do is to buy a sailboat and live on it. i do want to know if there are any jobs close to the marinas or are the marinas close the the cities?

Hey- your dream is doable.
At 14 I became interested in boats, and joined a local yacht club.
Now at 15, I own my own San Juan 21, and work at the club taking care of their boats.
Don't just buy a boat to sleep at the dock

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